In-person or Virtual Events: Which One's Better?

June 25, 2008

Are live conferences and industry events on the endangered species list, the result of higher travel costs and greater online networking opportunities?

That’s the question I’ve been pondering lately in the wake of a couple of cancellations of live events that I had been planning to attend. For me, nothing compares with networking with people in person. I can’t count the story ideas, new information, and friendships I’ve acquired by attending meetings like CSCMP, the Institute for Supply Management, APICS, NASSTRAC…to name just a few. It’s inconceivable, to me anyway, that any online version of these events could produce the same kind of results.

But it’s also undeniable that we’re operating today in a new environment that may mitigate against the traditional in-person attendance at meetings and events. In addition to the cost and increased online options just mentioned, there’s the increasing global nature of most supply chain management jobs. So if you want a truly global representation at an event, it’s pretty tough to physically attract the folks from around the globe who should be in attendance. By doing that same conference virtually online, global representation becomes eminently doable.

At Supply Chain Management Review, for example, we’ve had a lot of success with our virtual Global Supply Chain Conference, which we conduct annually with our sister publication Logistics Management. We have people tuning in from all over the globe to hear the keynotes and workshop sessions. Is it the same as hearing someone speak in person and then networking with peers over a cup of coffee? No, but we try to get as close to that experiance as we can.

So here is the question before the floor. Are you traveling less to attend industry meeting and events? Do you even agree that the in-person events are superior to their virtual counterparts?

I would be interested in getting your take on the future of conferences and events in the supply chain space.

Posted by Frank Quinn on June 25, 2008 | Comments (4)

March 19, 2009

In response to: In-person or Virtual Events: Which One's Better?
aditya commented:

All great ideas but I would also add another item to it: consider doing a virtual event. Virtual events are a great way to stay in front of customers, generate new leads and help close business already in the pipeline. There are simple very inexpensive ways to hold virtual events and there are more robust, feature rich and scalable solutions (like InXpo, ON24 or Stream57) that are great for putting on events that include virtual exhibits, informative conference sessions, product demos as well as networking with attendees. While people are reluctant to travel, they are highly likely to attend an event that they can attend from their desk. Even if you are simply doing a product demo or better yet, offering some educational information in say a webinar or webcast, a virtual event will get you more exposure and more leads very cost effectively. Visit www.virtualedge.org to find out more about how to do this and locate virtual event providers.

November 25, 2008

In response to: In-person or Virtual Events: Which One's Better?
FoxfireWMS commented:

I give alot of demos and there has been a movement to have a smaller presence on site and then have the demo remote. It makes the demo much harder to give as I can not gauge audience reaction. Kendall Gordan, SE www.foxfiresoftware.com

August 7, 2008

In response to: In-person or Virtual Events: Which One's Better?
MIke Dulaney commented:

I agree that face to face meetings will never go away. Especially with Supply Chain Technology where companies spend 10's if not 100s of thousands or more on products. What will happen is that virtual events will reach more worldwide buyers, and SC Tech vendors will attract more and better qualified sales leads. Once those leads are worked, as with any live trade show, then it's time for a face to face meeting. The Virtual Event for Supply Chain Technology will be the spring board in this economy, to face to face meetings with better qualified sales prospects.

July 8, 2008

In response to: In-person or Virtual Events: Which One's Better?
Dave Snyder / Federal Rack commented:

There is no doubt that the way in which we share and exchange information is changing. None of us will be traveling as much as we once did. However that doesn't mean it will end. There is no substitute for meeting folks in person. You may ultimately spend more time communicating via various technologies, but I want to shake the hand of people I do crucial business with at least once.

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